It seems likely to me that, in the future, children’s literature will increase its focus on building empathy, creating connections to role models, and providing escape from stress. Dr. Margaret Merga’s (2020) research into the impact of reading and school libraries highlights the well-being benefits to young people who read for pleasure. As we navigate a world that continues to adapt to the challenges of a global pandemic, this result is of particular importance.

Books that show how young people manage adversity, build resilience and find hope appeal to a wide range of readers. Those who are experiencing adversity themselves and those who seek to understand the world beyond their own community. Young people are consuming vast amounts of media. If authors do not ensure that their content matches the complexity of ideas and experiences that young people are facing and encountering in this forum, are they holding up their end of the bargain? There is an opportunity here to help young people to navigate the information they are receiving through a lens appropriate to their life stage.

So, who will drive this change? I see this coming from two spaces- librarians and, mostly, young people themselves. Social media platforms such as BookTube, Bookstagram, and BookTok are already filled with young people who are promoting their love of books to other users. @abbys_library3 has over 84 thousand followers on TikTok,  happyindulgence on Instagram has over 13 thousand followers, and thisstoryaintover has over 67 subscribers on BookTube. These content creators use social media to promote reading and specific books that young people are then keen to get their own hands on. School librarians then need to be aware of these platforms and utilise them within their spaces by identifying trending books and creating displays that tap into this aesthetic.

Reference List

Merga, M.K. (2021, August 9). Books offer a healing retreat for youngsters caught up in a pandemic. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/books-offer-a-healing-retreat-for-youngsters-caught-up-in-a-pandemic-165247

When choosing resources for a school library, the main focus must be on the users. Who are they? Where are they coming from? What do they have access to? What can they confidently use?

In my setting, we cater to the needs of staff and students. The students are in years 7-12, have varied reading habits, study a range of subjects, have different reading abilities, cognitive abilities, interests and, supports (physical, intellectual, emotional) at home. The teachers run the gamut from technophobe to technophile and rely on the school library for curriculum resources, teaching and learning resources, and personal reading recommendations.

If the goal is to keep a level playing field where all can access the resources provided by the library, the above needs to be taken into account.

Our budget, like many school libraries, is limited. Ebook subscriptions and databases have to be chosen with the biggest possible bang for our buck. This is something that is difficult to manage with so many different platforms that all provide different content. As highlighted in Gray (2017), choosing one of many options can leave libraries without desired titles and the shift from one subscriber to another means the loss of what you currently have- and possibly a shift to a different operating system.

My personal attitude is that it is currently better to help staff and students to access quality information through a well-designed and maintained online library presence, including support to access digital resources through local library portals.

References

Gray, M. (2017). Ebooks: To subscribe or not to subscribe? SCIS Connections (101), https://www.scisdata.com/connections/issue-101/ebooks-to-subscribe-or-not-to-subscribe